This section contains an assortment of rowing footage for your perusal, comments and contribution. If you have any favourite rowing videos or something you'd like to show 'n' share, post it in here!
Video footage is a powerful tool that can be used to assist with coaching and learning the art of rowing. Often rowers have difficulty understanding what their coach is talking about when identifying flaws, and it is not until they see video footage of themselves rowing that they can see the error, then subsequently rectify it. Watching footage of higher-level rowers is also beneficial to rowers of all skill levels, but is of particular value to novice and mid-range rowers in the search for improvement. Please contribute any videos (not sure how?) you feel would be useful to share, such as:
Exemplary technique in elite rowers
Flaws in low- or mid-level rowers (remember to be constructive, not critical)
Racing techniques/styles/strategies
Tips and techniques (instructional videos)
Memorable footage or (in)famous races
The most helpful and important thing you can do is post COMMENTS about the videos you put up - don't just throw up YouTube links, explain why you think people should watch them! That way people will know what to look for when they watch the videos.
2011 National Rowing Championships (Adelaide) - Men's Open Club Four Race This race is a great example of club-level rowers racing on sheer guts and determination. The Open Club Four races do not typically contain many state- or Australian-level representatives in the crew, due to the fact that the crews must all be members of the same club, and the top-level rowers are usually busy with other events such as interstate races, King's Cup, etc. If you listen carefully to the commentator you will notice that he announces Dave Dennis (Olympic-level rower) as a crew member in the UWABC crew, however due to a late substitution Dave was replaced by Charlie Ravine, a club-level rower from Perth. The crew still put in a very hard-fought race to win a well-deserved bronze medal. In terms of technique - in the later stages of the race the Banks Rowing Club crew being to shorten their stroke as they begin to fatigue. This occurs just after the 1000m mark of the race (approx. 3:45 mark of the video), and you will hear it pointed out by the commentator (although the crew has shortened their stroke well before he mentions it) - notice that the oars are 'missing water' (that is, they are travelling further back than the point where they actually enter the water, meaning some of the travelled length is wasted). This is a common error that is hard to prevent, because your body is screaming at you by this stage, and it becomes hard to preserve form! This is where a coxwain can come in very handy by focusing the rowers and calling for length, however this event was in coxless boats so unfortunately this couldn't be done. In this case the coach and crew could have identified this tendency in prior training, and worked on strategies to overcome it and focus on it during the race! Prior preparation/analysis, and knowing your biggest weaknesses are valuable tools to help you row faster in big events.
2000 Olympics (Sydney) - Men's Coxless Pair Race(Commonly referred to as the "French Pair" race) This famous race shows what many coaches/rowers believe to be a somewhat questionable and risky race tactic - however in this case they pulled it off! The race is famous for the demonstration of sheer determination, guts and heart shown by the French pair. They are a long way off the front runners in 5th place, seemingly out of the race, but decide to throw everything they have into the race in a last-ditch attempt at getting back in contention. You can first start to notice the change in pace and urgency of their rowing at about 4:28, just before the 1000m mark, and they start to move up the field at about the 5:30 mark of the video. This is remarkable, because most crews put in a big burst in the final 500m or so rather than in the middle of the race - going too early means running the risk of burning out and running out of steam before the race is finished, then subsequently being overtaken. This almost happens to the French duo, but their lead was so substantial and they managed to row with enough adrenaline and heart to hang on to the finish line and take gold. For this reason, coaches and athletes often use the video for inspiration prior to racing, to illustrate the importance of the mental side of rowing races. As the commentator says, it is "that was the most devastating burst I have ever seen at a World Championship..."
UWA Boat Club 2010 State Championships 'Psyche-Up' Video (Perth)
This video was filmed by Casey Cobb and Geoff Abbott at several UWABC training sessions in the late stages of the 2010 Rowing WA Club Season. The video showcases a wide range of ability levels in the rowers, as it encompasses rowers ranging from State- and National-level representatives, all the way through to novices and D-grade club rowers.
You will notice in some of the footage the boats have large amounts of water spraying up behind them as the row along - this is caused by a training device known as a hydrobrake. Hydrobrakes serve to slow down the run of the boat in-between each stroke, making the rowers work harder to keep the boat moving at speed (similar to resistance training in some sports). It is also a valuable training drill for working on keeping a strong body position at the catch.
The Viewing Room
This section contains an assortment of rowing footage for your perusal, comments and contribution. If you have any favourite rowing videos or something you'd like to show 'n' share, post it in here!
Video footage is a powerful tool that can be used to assist with coaching and learning the art of rowing. Often rowers have difficulty understanding what their coach is talking about when identifying flaws, and it is not until they see video footage of themselves rowing that they can see the error, then subsequently rectify it. Watching footage of higher-level rowers is also beneficial to rowers of all skill levels, but is of particular value to novice and mid-range rowers in the search for improvement. Please contribute any videos (not sure how?) you feel would be useful to share, such as:
The most helpful and important thing you can do is post COMMENTS about the videos you put up - don't just throw up YouTube links, explain why you think people should watch them! That way people will know what to look for when they watch the videos.
2011 National Rowing Championships (Adelaide) - Men's Open Club Four Race
This race is a great example of club-level rowers racing on sheer guts and determination. The Open Club Four races do not typically contain many state- or Australian-level representatives in the crew, due to the fact that the crews must all be members of the same club, and the top-level rowers are usually busy with other events such as interstate races, King's Cup, etc. If you listen carefully to the commentator you will notice that he announces Dave Dennis (Olympic-level rower) as a crew member in the UWABC crew, however due to a late substitution Dave was replaced by Charlie Ravine, a club-level rower from Perth. The crew still put in a very hard-fought race to win a well-deserved bronze medal.
In terms of technique - in the later stages of the race the Banks Rowing Club crew being to shorten their stroke as they begin to fatigue. This occurs just after the 1000m mark of the race (approx. 3:45 mark of the video), and you will hear it pointed out by the commentator (although the crew has shortened their stroke well before he mentions it) - notice that the oars are 'missing water' (that is, they are travelling further back than the point where they actually enter the water, meaning some of the travelled length is wasted). This is a common error that is hard to prevent, because your body is screaming at you by this stage, and it becomes hard to preserve form! This is where a coxwain can come in very handy by focusing the rowers and calling for length, however this event was in coxless boats so unfortunately this couldn't be done. In this case the coach and crew could have identified this tendency in prior training, and worked on strategies to overcome it and focus on it during the race! Prior preparation/analysis, and knowing your biggest weaknesses are valuable tools to help you row faster in big events.
2000 Olympics (Sydney) - Men's Coxless Pair Race(Commonly referred to as the "French Pair" race)
This famous race shows what many coaches/rowers believe to be a somewhat questionable and risky race tactic - however in this case they pulled it off! The race is famous for the demonstration of sheer determination, guts and heart shown by the French pair. They are a long way off the front runners in 5th place, seemingly out of the race, but decide to throw everything they have into the race in a last-ditch attempt at getting back in contention. You can first start to notice the change in pace and urgency of their rowing at about 4:28, just before the 1000m mark, and they start to move up the field at about the 5:30 mark of the video. This is remarkable, because most crews put in a big burst in the final 500m or so rather than in the middle of the race - going too early means running the risk of burning out and running out of steam before the race is finished, then subsequently being overtaken. This almost happens to the French duo, but their lead was so substantial and they managed to row with enough adrenaline and heart to hang on to the finish line and take gold. For this reason, coaches and athletes often use the video for inspiration prior to racing, to illustrate the importance of the mental side of rowing races.
As the commentator says, it is "that was the most devastating burst I have ever seen at a World Championship..."
UWA Boat Club 2010 State Championships 'Psyche-Up' Video (Perth)
This video was filmed by Casey Cobb and Geoff Abbott at several UWABC training sessions in the late stages of the 2010 Rowing WA Club Season. The video showcases a wide range of ability levels in the rowers, as it encompasses rowers ranging from State- and National-level representatives, all the way through to novices and D-grade club rowers.
You will notice in some of the footage the boats have large amounts of water spraying up behind them as the row along - this is caused by a training device known as a hydrobrake. Hydrobrakes serve to slow down the run of the boat in-between each stroke, making the rowers work harder to keep the boat moving at speed (similar to resistance training in some sports). It is also a valuable training drill for working on keeping a strong body position at the catch.